Warren Ellis has a new comic out, with artist Jason Howard. It's called Trees. It's a take on the trope where Earth is invaded by aliens so advanced they see humanity the way we see ants -- it's not a fight, they just sort of brush us out of the way and kill us without a thought when we get too close. It's not a new premise, but, as is the trend since at least The Walking Dead, this is a story about what happens next, how people function when this becomes normal. Trees isn't about the invasion; it starts 10 years after.

It's a solid premise and I'm curious where Ellis goes with it. Or if he'll get around to finishing the damn thing.

Meanwhile, the latest issue of Astro City is the first to be drawn by somebody other than Brent Anderson. Graham Nolan does the art chores on this one and he does solid work -- his layouts are more playful than Brent's but his inks are tighter. (I've found Brent's inks to be pretty muddy since he switched to digital -- I still like his work but I liked it better before the current series.)

The story is about a down-on-his-luck supervillain. And it starts out with a supervillain barbershop quartet called the Sweet Adelines, who sing four-part harmonies while they rob banks.

I've talked a lot about the superhero genre's obsession with trying to look mature. Astro City is what a superhero story that's ACTUALLY mature looks like. This is a story about addiction and loss and self-delusion and self-destructive behavior -- AND it's got a barbershop quartet robbing a bank. Suck it, Man of Steel.

ComicsAlliance has a whopping 17-page preview of the upcoming Fantagraphics collection of Don Rosa's Son of the Sun. It is delightful. Don't know when I'll get a chance to pick it up -- I still haven't finished vol 2 of the Barks collection -- but damned if that preview doesn't make me grin like an idiot.

(Aside: "Flintheart Glomgold" -- great character name, or the GREATEST character name?)

Got to meet Rosa last year, and bought a signed print from him. (Scrooge diving into his money bin.) He's a great guy. And it looks like Fantagraphics is treating him right with these collections, which is great to hear.

Battling Boy is really, really great; I highly recommend picking it up. It's a kids' book with bits of '50's sci-fi, dystopian post-apocalyptic monsters, and a good bit of Kirby Thor overtones to it. The first book's out and there's a second coming, plus the aforementioned prequels.

Bandette is fucking wonderful. It's a brightly-colored, funny, multiple-Eisner-nominated all-ages caper book by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover, and it's 99 cents an issue, available DRM-free from Comixology.

There's a hardcover out now too, but I sure do like that 99-cent price point for the digital versions.

Bandette really is a delight, and holy god is it gorgeous. I can't recommend it enough. The only thing I could imagine complaining about is the fact that she is never actually challenged by anything, at any point in the comic. It would be more of a problem if everything else wasn't so damned enjoyable.

Even better, however, is Rat Queens. I just found out about the series last week, and immediately fell head over heels in love with it.

God Hates Astronauts is pretty fun. It reminds me, in places, of Milk and Cheese, Chew, Saga, Manhattan Projects, and Orc Stain. (And maybe a little bit of Prison Pit, but with way better art.) If it's got a flaw, it's that it feels, in places, like Browne is trying too hard to be zany and outrageous.

So my first purchase of a Marvel book featuring a Kirby character in 3 years was Silver Surfer #6, by Dan Slott and Mike and Laura Allred.

It was a good choice. It is a totally delightful done-in-one book.

It's about the Surfer bringing a human woman with him on his trials and discovering that humans need a lot of care and upkeep, and then there's a fight, and then she helps save the day. Vaguely Doctor Who vibe to it. It's fun and as gorgeous as I expect from the Allreds (it feels more like an Allred book than a Slott one). And it's the sixth issue but doesn't rely on any backstory beyond what's explained on the intro page. It's fun, it's funny, and it tells a complete story.

MEANWHILE:

Gotham Academy #1, sadly, does NOT tell a complete story, and suffers from the decompression that a lot of #1's do these days. That said, it's still a thoroughly enjoyable book. (Elevator pitch: "What if Hogwarts was in Gotham City?")

It introduces its main characters and a couple of mysteries, and has the requisite Bruce Wayne cameo, and I wish there was a little more to it but I enjoyed what was there and I'm looking forward to more.

Hey, in my backpack right now I've got TMNT Adventures vol 3 (just finished; latest release is vol 8 and all of them are sitting on my shelf) and a tablet that's got, among other things, the Valiant Bundle that I've finished vol 1 of each book on but have just barely started the vol 2's. Rat Queens is on the list but it's a pretty long list.

And hey, it looks like the first All-New Doop trade is out today; I might have to pick that up, too. (I bought one issue that was light on Kirby characters but have mostly not been buying it because of my boycott. I don't know if I'll be reading a LOT more Marvel books now, but I think I'll be catching up with a few. I've been meaning to check out Waid's Daredevil...)